Joe Stockall To Walk Out Match Ball As Part Of 'EFL Stories' Launch

Joe Stockall will play a key role in the start of the new football season at Blackpool’s home match against Exeter City.

To mark the start of the new football season, the EFL has launched its #EFLStories campaign to tell the stories of all the people who help make the EFL what it is - a football experience for everyone.

Launching today with an #EFLstories video, over the course of the 2016/17 season the EFL will share individual accounts from a plethora fans, players, managers, club staff and a club mascot or two, with each person sharing the reasons why they love football via their favourite memories, tales and feelings about the wider game.

Across the opening two weekends of the season, the first 72 people featured on the #EFLStories website will have the privilege of delivering their club’s new Mitre match ball to the pitch at the first home league game of the season.

With #EFLStories ball presentations taking place across all three divisions of the Sky Bet EFL, each person nominated for this honour has been put forward by their favourite EFL club.

Joe became involved with Blackpool FC Community Trust after engaging in a number of community outreach projects and took part in the Community Trust's first year of delivery on the EFL Trust's BTEC Futsal education project.

Through his two years of study Joe paid great attention to detail and gave 100 per cent effort throughout his course and completed his BTEC with a DDD* - the highest grade available.

Whilst studying, he also got involved in many voluntary opportunities, including Sports Camps, NCS, Kicks and School Sports placements, and actually completed over 1000 hours of volunteering.

Joe has since gained paid roles with the Community Trust as a Community Coach on the Kicks project and the School Sport Initiative, whilst also working on the NCS programme as a staff member on the residential and social action elements of the project.

Joe has also just completed his first year of a Foundation Degree with the Trust and his Level 2 FA coaching badge and his Level 2 Multi Skills Coaching qualification with 1st4Sport.

All the #EFLStories can be viewed at www.eflstories.com and EFL fans at home and abroad are being invited to submit the reasons why they love the game to the site. With the campaign continuing throughout the 2016/17 season, the EFL will be sharing a variety of the stories, photos and videos across social media.

Drew Barrand, EFL Marketing Director said: “Everyone who attends an EFL game or works behind the scenes at one of our 72 clubs has a story to tell about what football means to them.

“Following this season’s rebrand to the EFL, the #EFLStories campaign has been created to demonstrate the breadth and depth of what the EFL offers. Be it high drama, great games, communities uniting or innovating the game, the EFL really does offer something for everybody as this collection of captivating stories show.”